Erika Dohl 'I, Castorpollux' LP

The central theme to the album is the “split-self” and variable perceptions of time that Dohi has faced at formative moments in her life. She experienced the 1995 Kobe earthquake at age 7. Hiding under a table during the worst of it, she later emerged to find the world around her crumbled. In her immediate vicinity, a fixture of her childhood remained standing. The Tower of the Sun, a type of three-faced time machine itself from Expo 70, designed by artist Taro Okamoto is a trail-marker on Erika’s journey, a stand-in sigil to unlock the mysterious sounds of her work, with 70s synths and retro sci-fi aesthetics permeating the album’s narratives. Much of the album was written while living in Texas where the split between her Asian self and the idea of being an American necessitated a near mountain of self-discovery to reconcile how she felt and who she was within the social backdrop of a strongly conservative environment. It is no wonder that the character of the Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux from Greek and Roman mythology, resonate so deeply with her, or Haruki Murakami’s Two Moons and their strange light.

From her contributions to various projects, and her participation in the Artist in Residency collaborations, Erika has become a staple of the 37d03d community. 37d03d is honoured to partner with her on her profound and moving debut.